Seeing Aislin
by Sinclair Hannon
Summary: What if the little English girl Zed was fated to be with was different? Could get pretty detailed and different to the original story
1. Chapter 1

**Sucky first chapter, but it'll get better soon, i hope...**

Stepping out of the car, Aislin took the chance to really stretch out, yawning before she could stop herself. The drive from Colorado to Wreckinridge had been slow and boring. Once she had stretched out and various joints had clicked themselves into comfort, she took her first real look at the place she was expected to live in. She blinked a few times, trying to formulate an opinion, then settled on just going with it.  
"What do you think honey? Do you like it?" Sue, her mother, asked.  
"I think it could do with one or two weeks of TLC, but it could work." Aislin said, shrugging a little as she walked around the car to open the trunk. Sue sighed softly, catching Aislin's attention again.  
"Mom, it's great, but I really just wanna get moved in so I can sleep. I'll be in a better mood once I've slept." She said, giving Sue a tired smile. She was really tired, but it wasn't just from traveling, it was from everything that she couldn't tell her mom. Sue nodded.  
"Alright. You going to be okay with taking your stuff up, or should I give you a hand?" Sue asked her daughter.  
"Nah, I got it. It's just two bags and a box anyway." She said, grabbing the largest bag first and put it down so she could wheel it to the house.  
"Keys?" She asked her mom, putting her hand out a little, even though her mom was the other side of the car. Sue took them out of her jeans pocket and tossed them over to Aislin, who made an easy task of catching them.  
"Thanks." She said, heading to the front door and unlocked it. It was probably unfair that by grabbing her stuff first, she automatically got first dibs on any room she wanted out of the three that this house had, but she would always give the master bedroom up to her mom.

When she did get through to the larger of the other two rooms, she was actually happy to see that it was a blank canvas for her to do with as she pleased. She set the bag down and went down the stairs and out to go get the second bag and the box of things she had already started to collect on the trip. Her mom was carrying box of kitchen stuff, food included, and she looked as if she was planning ahead. Aislin just stayed on the bottom step until her mom had passed, then went out to grab her bag and the box she had left. When she was walking to the car, another car, more like a jeep, went past, followed by a motorbike. Aislin took a moment to admire the motorbike, a rather beautiful Honda CBR125R to be more specific, painted a glossy black. She had to admit, that model looked good in black, since this was the first time she had seen it in black in real life. She shook her head, knowing her mom would freak if she ever mentioned wanting a motorcycle of her own. She swung her messenger bag onto her shoulder and picked up the box carefully, making sure her grip on it was pretty strong before she even thought about walking away from the car. Her mom stepped aside for her at the front door, letting her pass.  
"Do you want some help with that on the stairs?" Sue asked her daughter.  
"Nah, it's cool thanks." Aislin said, knowing she was more than capable of carrying the box up the stairs. Her mom nodded, but watched her go up the stairs anyway. Aislin was used to it by now, getting more of the protectiveness from her mom since she was the youngest one of the family, and she had to admit that it got on her nerves.

Once both her clothes were unpacked and put into the built in closet, she sat back on her bed and started to rummage through the box she had brought up from the car. Mainly it contained a dozen books, a rather unique and cute box for her jewelry, a few files and notebooks for school, and a box with hair straighteners that had changeable plates so she could curl her hair with them if she wanted to. She doubted she would do anything more than straighten her hair though. Sue knocked on her door before she looked around the door.  
"What do you want for dinner? I was thinking either pizza or Chinese." She said, looking at her daughter, who was currently looking at her with a slightly confused and startled expression.  
"Uh, Chinese sounds good, unless they don't do vegetarian, in which case I'll have a pizza." Aislin said, guessing that she would have an hour at least to herself. Sue nodded.  
"Alright, I'll lock the door behind me. Here are the other keys by the way." She said, handing her daughter two keys. Aislin took them and tucked them into her jeans pocket  
"Thanks mom." She said, not knowing what else to say. Sue nodded, and left her to what she was doing. It wasn't long before Aislin heard her mom's car drive off, leaving her alone. She looked around her room, trying to figure out what to do for the next hour. She eyed up one of her hardcover notebooks, one that she had brought over from the UK with her, and decided that she needed to go through the six verses she had found online and was currently using as her own speech therapy. She had been told so many times that she didn't need therapy, but she had been teased more for the way she spoke, and how often she often messed up talking, so she had secretly taken to saying the six verses she had found, trying to get at least one whole verse right the first time. She grabbed the notebook and her iPhone, deciding to sit outside on the porch, despite the chill in the air, and headed out.

When Sue came back from getting their dinner, they wordlessly set about getting it all ready to eat at the breakfast bar in the kitchen. It was only when Aislin was sitting on one of the stools with her chopsticks poking at her noodles that Sue spoke.  
"I saw that there was a CeX store in town. You could see about getting a job with them for the weekends, if you wanted." Sue suggested. Aislin decided it was probably because she had worked at CeX in Nottingham before they moved to Colorado.  
"I don't see why i shouldn't apply, and since I already had a job there, it shouldn't be too hard getting in." She said before devouring the noodles she had caught on her chopsticks. Sue smiled at her agreement, and her attitude towards her food.  
"I'm glad you think so, and that you seemed to have your appetite back." Sue mused, making Aislin roll her eyes discreetly as possible.  
"I was just stressed with the moving. You know I can't settle my stomach when there's too much going on." Aislin shrugged, picking up a spring roll and taking a bite. Sue smiled and shook her head.  
"I know, but I'm your mother and all mothers worry about their children." She said, taking a bite of her own spring roll. Aislin just offered a shrug as means of a response, too busy devouring her spring roll to actually bother with a reply.  
"So, tomorrow, will you come into town with me to do a bit of shopping? We need to do a lot of it if we're planning on making this place our home." Sue said, looking at Aislin with a serious expression. Aislin nodded, looking up at her.  
"Sounds like a plan. Did you see any of my usual stores in town whilst you were there?" She asked, her head tilted to the side a little as she licked off a few crumbs from her bottom lip.  
"I didn't really have a chance to look, but we can have a girls' day out tomorrow and look together." Sue said, trying to encourage her daughter to an interest in shopping.  
"Guess so." Aislin said quietly, looking at her noodles again.


	2. Chapter 2

**Second chapter, and a brief encounter with Karla and Zed!  
Her outfit can be found on polyvore, followed by this second part of the link: /untitled_814/set?id=100980629**

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As promised, Sue took Aislin out to town so they could go shopping. Of course, Sue was dressed in her usual casual, but smart style, a simple pale pink blouse with black slacks and black ballet pumps, and she was trying to hide her want to make a comment about Aislin not really trying to show off her figure. Aislin was actually quiet happy in her hoodie, graphic tee, grey skinny jeans and converse high tops, and wasn't really up for being told what to wear, at least not today. The car ride was quiet, both of them had things to think about; Sue wanting to get ready for work since she was starting on Monday, and today being Saturday; and Aislin was trying to organise how she was going to get used to going to school in America, and how she was going to react to being the new girl this time. Aislin had been to five schools before she had moved to Wreckenridge with her mom, so she should have been used to being the new girl by now, but she wasn't and she hated the idea of being new again. She looked up when Sue parked the car.  
"Right, shall we separate here, and you go and get your special face washes and what-not whilst I sort out what I'll need for work?" Sue asked her. Aislin nodded in agreement to the suggestion.  
"Sure. I'll text you when I'm done and we can meet up. If you don't mind though, I'll just look for Lush, CeX, then look for a music store for my instruments, then go home." She said, praying her mother didn't try drag the shopping trip out. Relief overwhelmed her when Sue nodded.  
"Alright. Do you have your bank card with you? And do you know your limit for spending?" Sue asked, wanting to make sure that Ailsin was alright to go off on her own.  
"Yes, and yes." Aislin said, nodding once to each point, her red hair falling forward to hide her face a little. She didn't bother pushing it back.  
"Alright, just let me know when you're going home." Sue said as Aislin got out the car.  
"Will do, mom" Aislin said, just glad to be able to go out on her own for a little while.

Having managed to find the CeX store, Aislin spoke to the manager, who seemed to be more than happy to have someone that knew what they were doing. She had agreed to take her CV in after school on Monday, then left to go find the Lush store, feeling good about herself. She was actually beginning to think that maybe the move wasn't going to be as bad as she had thought it would be. She walked into Lush with a smile on her face, thinking up what she needed to get from there.  
_Love Lettuce. Check.  
Tea Tree Water. Check.  
__Herbalism. Check.  
__Enzymion. Check.  
__Fair Trade Honey. Check.  
__American Dream. Check._ She looked around as she walked to one of the lines for the till, trying to think if she needed anything else from the store, but what really caught her eye was the lady in front of her and the guy that was with her. The woman was of average height, and looked like the caring motherly type that didn't care who you were, she'd still love you. But the boy was definitely over six foot. And looked like he would rather be somewhere else. Aislin made a point at looking at her hands, since being near people always ran the risk of having to talk to them, and she was terrible with talking to people just for the sake of talking to them when she wasn't prepared for it. Long story short; she was socially awkward and shy.

"Mom, seriously, why couldn't you get Yves to help you with the shopping this week?" The boy asked his mother. Aislin could feel the vibrations of his bass like voice go through her mind, like she was a tuning fork, and he was a perfectly tuned instrument. The woman just looked up at him.  
"Because he has homework to do, and it's your turn anyway." The woman said, her tone sounding firm, but still affectionate. Aislin wondered how a boy that tall could be the son of a woman that size, but guessed he must have taken after his father or something.  
"If you say so." The boy grumbled, crossing his arms, stepping forward when a customer had finished paying. Chancing a peek, Aislin let her control on her 'second sight' slip, and she could see her assumption was right about the pair. The woman was outlined in gold, proving she was very loving towards her son. And as for her son, he was a slight gray, close to black, with hints of red, but not much red. Aislin made a mental note to keep to herself for as long as she was standing near them, taking control of her mind again. She just hoped and prayed that there weren't any savants around to notice her using her power.

Aislin was wondering around the music store when she got a text message from Sue. as she had guessed, it was asking where she was so that they could meet. Aislin replied that she was in the music store, and had already managed to find a clarinet and Saxophone that she would like to buy. She hadn't been able to look at the pianos next, but they were next to be seen. Aislin only had to wait five minutes before Sue joined her.  
"So, you found what you want?" Sue asked. Aislin nodded.  
"Yeah, this and this. I haven't had a look at the pianos yet, but I can wait a few months before I get it." She said, pointing out the clarinet and saxophone she wanted. Sue looked at them, then at her daughter.  
"And your choice has nothing to do with the fact that they both have purple cases?" She teased lightly, knowing it was Aislin's favorite color. Or at least it was one of her favorite colors. Aislin just shrugged.  
"Maybe." She said, hooking her thumbs into the front belt loops of her jeans. Sue smiled.  
"Come on, let's get them and go home; you look like you're tired." Sue said, heading to the counter, Aislin following her. Aislin was tired, but she wouldn't admit it. She was been up most of the night thinking about what she would do now that she had to start her life over again, in a different continent, and how she was going to cope with being the strange new kid again. In the past, she could always go to her dad for help, but now he was gone, Aislin had no idea what to do.


	3. Chapter 3

**So, I'm just going to skip to when she goes to school, since I can't write about boring days.  
Her outfit is on .com, followed by: /untitled_815/set?id=100992800**

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Aislin passed on her mom's offer to drive her to school, deciding that it would be better if she threw herself in the deep end and forced herself to socialize. She walked into reception, biting her lip nervously as she put her hands on the counter.  
"Hi, you must be the new girl from England. I'm Mr Joe." A man said, walking up to the counter from the other side, and started going through a pile of papers before he found what he was looking for.  
"Yeah, Aislin." She said, pronouncing her name as 'Ashlyn' since it was a very unusual spelling. He looked at her for a brief moment, then handed her a few pieces of paper.  
"I wondered how it was pronounced. Which way of spelling is that?" He asked, although she guessed his interest was just to try make her feel like she could relax and open up to him.  
"It's Irish." She said, looking at the papers he gave her.  
"I see. You have your timetable, a map of the school and an explanation of how the grades system works. I've tried to work your subjects in so that they are as similar to your old subjects." Mr Joe said, watching as Aislin glanced over it all and nodded.  
"Right, well, if we get you to it now, you'll be in time for registration." Mr Joe said, stepping around to lead her off to wherever she needed to go for registration. She fiddled with the strap of her bag a little, hoping that no one noticed her. Much to her relief, everyone else was rushing of to registration too, so she didn't pass many people.  
Until it came to _him_. She almost turned on her heel and ran away when she saw him. It was the guy she had seen in the store on Saturday, looking like he was about to do his own impersonation of Bruce Banner hulking out.  
"Mr Benedict, you should be in registration." Mr Joe said, making Aislin nearly beg him to shut up so the boy didn't notice them. He did though, but thankfully he dismissed Aislin like she was nothing more than just another girl he saw everyday.  
"Yeah. I was just on my way there." The boy said, sounding bored. His voice had the same effect on her now as it had on Saturday; vibrating through her mind. She looked at her feet, hoping that if she stayed quiet and didn't call too much attention to herself, she would go unnoticed by him.  
"Good, then you'll walk with us because we're all going to the same room." Mr Joe said, throwing Aislin into a small panic yet again. It wasn't that she had anything against this boy, but since she had caught sight of his aura on Saturday, she just didn't think it would be a good idea to be around him all that much when he was in whatever mood he seemed to be.  
"I'd prefer to walk alone." The boy said, looking at Mr Joe.  
"Yes, well you're going to be late if you don't start walking now." Mr Joe replied. Aislin bit her lip, hoping that the boy just started walking.  
"And while you're at it, you can show Miss Johnson to registration since she's in your registration group." Mr Joe added. Aislin nearly asked him to stay, but somehow managed to keep her head down and keep quiet.  
"Whatever." The boy said, turning on his heel and walking down the hall. Aislin looked up to watch him, but Mr Joe caught her eye by giving her a reassuring smile before he left. Aislin started following the boy, still biting her lip in nervousness.  
"You got a first name?" He asked her, making her jump a little.  
"Aislin." She said, trying to make herself heard, but not speak too loudly. He just nodded.  
"Well, Aislin, welcome to Hell." He said, not even giving her his first name. She raised an eyebrow to what he said, wondering if that was because he wanted to make her life at school Hell, or if it was a warning. She just decided to take it as his opinion of the school.

Exactly as she thought, the moment she walked in the room, all eyes were on her. The boy didn't bother tell the teacher that she was the new girl, he just went to a seat at the back and stretched out as he looked out the window.  
"You're the new girl. How do you pronounce your name?" The teacher asked. Aislin heard one or two people snigger a little.  
"It's Ash-lyn." She said, fighting the blush that was rising. The teacher nodded.  
"Take a seat." He said, gesturing to the only free seat, which was in front of the boy she had followed. She nodded once and went to the seat, trying to seem as invisible as possible. The boy didn't even look at her, which she was a little relieved about, but she knew nearly everyone else was looking at her. As soon as she sat down, the person in front of her turned in his seat to talk to her.  
"Where are you from?" He asked. Aislin looked at him, trying not to seem startled by the fact that anyone would talk to her.  
"England." She said, keeping her answer short. He didn't turn around.  
"Your accent is cute." He said, making her think that he was trying to be too friendly, possibly even flirty, with her.  
"Uh, not really." She said quietly, looking at her hands as she played with her rings. The boy laughed quiet.  
"Sure it is. It makes you sound like that hot chick from the pirate movie. You know the one." The boy said. Aislin knew exactly who he meant, and she doubted she sounded anything like Keira Knightley. She shook her head.  
"I don't." She said quietly, looking at her hands.  
"Aw, come on babe, have a little more confidence. And don't let Zed here scare you." The boy said, nodding his head to Tall dark and angry, as Aislin had dubbed him in her mind. She nearly rolled her eyes at how cliched it was; the bad boy had a bad boy name.  
"Do you ever shut up?" Zed spoke, making Aislin slouch into her seat, hoping she didn't get caught in the crossfire between the boys.  
"Dude, I was talking to her, not you." the first boy said, which seemed to just annoy Zed.  
"And somehow annoying me. Besides, we both know what you're thinking, and you're not going to get anywhere with it." Zed fumed quietly. Aislin didn't have to guess what Zed's aura was now, she just had a feeling that it was a dark shade of grey and tints of red. She couldn't wait until the bell went to get away from it. She glanced at the clock, realising that she just had to hold on for another few minutes and she could get out.

The rest of the day was pretty average, the looks at the beginning of each class, trying to find the classroom she had to be in and trying not to be late, and then the slight worry that she might bump into Zed, who she was beginning to see as an anti-hero, or just a villain, in some comic book she had read. Maybe he could be compared to Jason Todd from Batman? No, he was too wild for that. The big bad werewolf? More like it.

She had taken a seat in History, next to a girl with caramel skin and dreadlocks. She gave her a neutral smile, getting her stuff out her bag. She wasn't expecting the girl to say anything to her, but was happy when she did.  
"Hey, I'm Tina." The girl said, offering her hand for a brief shake.  
"Aislin." Aislin said quietly, slipping her hand into her hold for a second.  
"Enjoying your first day?" Tina asked. Aislin shrugged.  
"I've had worse." Aislin said. Tina nodded.  
"Met anyone interesting?" Tina asked. Aislin shook her head.  
"Interesting, maybe you only. As for people I should stay clear of; yes." Aislin said. Tina wanted to say something else, but their teacher had other ideas.  
In general, Aislin wasn't as clueless about American History as she thought she was. She was just happy that she had the sense to read up on anything she wasn't certain of. At the end of class, when she was packing her stuff up, she noticed Tina seemed to be waiting for her.  
"Where do you live? I might be able to give you a ride home." Tina said, smiling. Aislin smiled, telling her, which lead to Tina saying she could actually give her a ride.

When they were on their way out, Aislin decided to save herself a headache, letting her control of her gift go. Her vision changed, people being outlined with shimmery auras that changed in shades and colors. She walked with Tina to the car park, just ignoring the aruras, until she saw one that really surprised her. It was Zed's, and it was more of a relaxed orange color, and he was grinning to one of the boys in his group of friends. She actually did roll her eyes when she saw that he was leaning against the rather beautiful Honda she had seen on her first night in town. Tina noticed her looking, and smiled.  
"The school bad boys. The one with red hair is Luke, the guy with the back hair is Ben, the black guy is Marcus, and the tall, dark and handsome one is Zed Benedict." Tina said. Aislin looked at her.  
"Yeah, I'm in the same registration group as Zed." She said quietly. Tina grinned at her.  
"Isn't he gorgeous? Unfortunately he doesn't date any of us boring girls that live in the same town as him." Tina said, sounding as if she wouldn't mind Zed paying attention to her. Aislin shook her head.  
"I hope that means I'm safe from his attention." She said, more to herself than anything else. _It's really weird to see him in a good mood. Mind you, I'd be in a good mood too if I had a bike like that Honda._ She thought to herself. Just then, he looked right at her, an eyebrow raised. He watched her for a little bit, as if trying to figure something out. _Oh God, please tell me he isn't..._ Aislin stopped all thoughts and just looked at the ground. She would hate herself if he actually was a savant and had heard her comments. Tina didn't seem to notice Aislin's panic.  
"He's got a brother here too. Yves. He's much nicer to talk to." Tina said, unlocking the car. Aislin nodded.  
"Cool." She said, although she doubted she would talk to either of them.


	4. Chapter 4

**her outfit can be found on polyvore, followed by: /untitled_816/set?id=101086683**

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Aislin had managed to survive the week without coming across Zed Benedict beyond regestration, which she was relieved about. She had learnt that the Benedict boys were the major heart throb of most girls, but she was determined to not become one of those girls. Her rather short encounters with Zed Benedict in the mornings were bad enough, even with him coming in late almost every day. When he did come in, Aislin just took a deeper interest in her book. She also made a point of shielding her mind from anything and everything when he was in registration, terrified that he might just be a savant like she figured, and if he was, she just hoped like Hell he hadn't noticed her powers, or her thoughts.

Her lesson before lunch was History, which meant she got to sit with Tina. As they were leaving class, Nelson, a boy that was friends with Tina, joined them.  
"So, do you have plans for lunch?" Tina asked Aislin, slapping away Nelson's hand when he kept playing with her dreadlocks. Aislin nodded.  
"Yeah, I was going to try out Jazz band, just for fun." Aislin said, which caught Nelson's attention. Nelson reminded Aislin of those male friends that you have that seem to make up for the protective elder brothers that some girls never have.  
"Awesome! What do you play?" He asked, looking over at Aislin. She shrugged.  
"A little bit of piano, violin, sax and clarinet." Aislin said, making Tina laugh.  
"I'm sorry, I just love how you say it like it's nothing. The music teacher is going to love you." Tina said, smiling. Aislin shrugged.  
"I don't know, I just learnt them because I was bored." Aislin said. Nelson smirked, shaking his head.  
"Mr Keneally is still going to love you. I'll show you to the music room after we eat; I play sax for the band." Nelson said, going back to playing with Tina's hair. Tina sighed and gave up on slapping his hands away. Aislin giggled softly at Tina's annoyance at Nelson, even though she had a feeling it was only put on, and that Nelson only annoyed Tina as a means to get her attention. She looked ahead, searching the hallway for Zed Benedict in case she had to suddenly duck into a room to avoid him.  
"So, why did you start learning to play instruments? And why so many?" Tina asked as they made their way into the cafeteria and sat down at a table.  
"Uh, I just wanted to learn, and my parents didn't mind. Mom's super artistic, and my dad liked hearing me play." Aislin said, trying to sound casual, even though after two years, it still hurt to talk about her dad. Tina nodded.  
"Oh yeah, your mom's opening the new arts center, isn't she? Wow, that must be so cool." Tina mused. Aislin shrugged.  
"Sure, until you see how much the instruments cost." She said, trying to change the subject.

When Aislin walked into the music room with Nelson, she was amazed at how it was set up. Back in England, music was a joke, and if you were serious about it, you had to find your own teacher and pay for it, but here, it was like she had walked into a Wonderland of music. At the very front of the room was a highly polished black grand piano, which nearly made her heart melt just at the sight of it. Nelson looked at her, grinning.  
"What do you think?" He asked, leading her over to a desk that they could lean against.  
"Wow." Was all Aislin could say. She couldn't wait to get her hands on the grand piano, just dying to hear what it sounded like. The only thing that could pull her attention away from the piano was the feeling that she was being looked at rather intensely. She looked around the room quickly, until her gaze fell upon the last person she wanted to be in the same room as; Zed Benedict. She thought that seeing him for five minutes alone in registration would have been enough for one day, but some how it was fated that they would be in the same room at lunch. He was standing next to a boy that looked a lot like him, yet friendlier. She guessed he was the brother that Tina had mentioned on her first day. Zed looked away from her, and muttered something to the other boy, which was replied to with a shrug as the boy tried to adjust his reed on his clarinet. Aislin leant against the desk, looking at her feet.  
"Think you're going to be up to playing on your first day?" Nelson asked her, making her look up at him, like a deer caught in headlights.  
"What?" She breathed, hoping he was just joking. Nelson shrugged.  
"You'll probably end up playing with the band, since Mr Keneally likes to throw us in the deep end; test our nerves." He said, as if talking about the weather. _My nerves feel like they've jumped off a cliff, to their death!_ Aislin mentally screamed at him.  
"Oh." Was all she could muster in reality, looking back at her feet. She only looked up when Zed coughed, but judging from his aura flaring up in an orange as she caught the smirk that was covered by his hand. She would have sworn he was laughing at her mental comment, but she was still hoping he wasn't a savant. Maybe his brother said something funny.

When Mr Keneally, he was rambling on about how much practice they needed to get in before the Christmas performance, and how he hoped no one would let him down. Aislin was sure he was going to miss her completely, which she wouldn't have minded, until he actually did see her.  
"Ah, and we have a new girl. What's your name?" He said, looking at her with a sharp gaze.  
"Uh, Aislin, sir." She said, wishing she could hide behind Nelson. Mr Keneally nodded.  
"I see, and do you play anything?" He asked her. Aislin nodded, feeling everyone looking at her. Thankfully, everyone but Zed; he was too busy watching the drumstick he was twirling in his hand.  
"Uh, clarinet, tenor saxophone, piano, and Violin." Aislin said quietly, very aware of the looks she was getting.  
"I see. Jazz band fall in. You can have my spot at the Piano, Ailsin." Mr Keneally said to her, making her feel at least a little eager to get her hands on the grand piano.  
"Yes, sir." Aislin said, going to the piano after Nelson had given her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. She sat on the stool, and adjusted the height to suit her. She looked down at the keys in front of her, trying to calm her nerves. She looked at the sheet in front of her, happy it was a familiar song, and started to think through it, just to calm herself. She saw Zed sit at the drums, twirling his drumsticks once before he nodded to her to signal the start of his count in. Aislin melted into the sound of the grand piano when she started playing, loving how it sounded for her. She could feel her heartbeat falling into rhythm with the drums, the other instruments fitted in well. When she finished, she blinked and looked up, glancing at the others before she looked at Mr Keneally.  
"Perfection! I believe you were the missing piece for this band!" Mr Keneally said, putting his hand on Aislin's shoulder for a moment before he moved on to organize various other groups. Aislin looked around for Nelson, seeing him talking to Yves about something. She looked down at the keys again, guessing she should savor her last moments for the week at the grand.  
"Not bad." Aislin nearly screamed in fright at someone speaking to her out of the blue; she just wasn't expecting it at all. And she wasn't expecting to here that so very bass like voice say anything to her either.  
"um... thanks." She said quietly, looking at her hands in her lap, feeling minute next to this god of a boy standing near her.  
"And I doubt your nerves have commited suicide." Zed said, grabbing a chair and sitting next to her. She looked at him, her eyes wide in a mixture, or surprise and fear. So he was a savant.  
"Yeah, I've heard your comments; how your nerves jumped off a cliff, how you get lost in music. How you like my bike." He said the last part like he was mocking her a little  
"Well, I can't help it if you just so happen to ride a bike I like." Aislin said, sounding more confident than she felt. He shrugged.  
"Whatever. Just don't bring any trouble into this town. And don't make any trouble." He said, sounding more like he was threatening her.  
"I don't plan to." Aislin said, actually feeling a little afraid of him. She looked away, back at the keys of the piano, wondering why he would think she was a threat. Had he seem her in the last week? She almost cowered in her seat when he sat down in registration.  
"Good. Keep it that way." He said, getting up and going over to the clarinet player, and leaving Aislin trying to find herself.

It took until the end of school for Aislin to get her confidence back from her little conversation with Zed. And it seemed to have come back to her with a vengeance. As she walked out of the building with Tina, Zoe and Nelson, she promised herself that she would find out what his problem with her was. She was tired of him scaring her, and not knowing what it was that scared her about him. She had just finished telling the others of her plans to kick back and relax for the weekend when she looked out across the carpark and found herself staring at Zed. As always, he had his hands in his pockets, a smirk on his face, his shades covering his eyes and making it impossible to see who he was looking at, and leaning against his bike. His friends were talking with him, and seemed oblivious to the fact that Aislin wanted to slap the smirk right off their friend's face. Their auras were simple, made up of orange and hints of yellows. She rolled her eyes, guessing that the yellow was there because they were lying to make themselves look cooler. Zed's aura was more complicated; it still had the orange of amusement, but it was tinged with red and grey, like he was battling to decide how he felt. She looked to the others, smiling.  
"I'll be right back, I just need to do something." Aislin said to them before she made her way over to the bikers. She knew that people were noticing how she was making her way over, and so did one of the bikers, since he nudged on of his friends and nodded his head towards her. Zed looked at her, taking his shades off to look at her properly.  
"What is your problem with me? Or rather, just your problem?" Aislin said, crossing her arms as she stood in front of Zed, looking right at him. He raised an eyebrow.  
"Excuse me?" He said, amused now, the orange in his aura starting to take over, but the red still made itself mix.  
"Why should I put up with being told what to do by you; a guy that knows nothing about me? What? Scared a girl could cause more trouble than you, and ruin your reputation as the school bad boy?" Aislin asked, referring to his words at lunch. He frowned, obviously not liking being confronted.  
"Who's the angry chick?" One of the boys asked Zed. He looked over her head, which made Aislin feel like he was mocking how small she was compared to him.  
"No one." He said, shrugging.  
"No one? Are fucking kidding me? I have a name. Unlike you; just a cliche with a permanent sneer etched on his face." She snapped at him, resisting the urge to stamp her foot. His aura turned red and dark grey.  
"Oh, babe, you got him nailed." One of the guys laughed. Aislin turned to face him.  
"I didn't invite you into this conversation. Please butt out." She said, then turned to Zed.  
"You heard what I said in the music room." He said, glaring down at her. She rolled her eyes.  
"Yeah, and I want to hear your reasons for saying it." Aislin challenged.  
"I'm the last person you want to cross, little girl." Zed said, standing up straight.  
_"Stop trying to scare me and get to the damn reason why you think I'm a threat."_ Aislin said to him, creating a mind link with him, and breaking it once she had finished what she had to say. Zed looked like she had actually slapped him, his aura moving to a confused light grey.  
"Just... go home." He said, looking at her like he wanted to say something. She rolled her eyes again.  
"Whatever. you still owe me an explanation." She said, turning on her toes, pretty sure her hair was flying, and probably touching his jaw and neck, and walked away, her hips swaying a bit too much for her liking.


	5. Chapter 5

Aislin had started on her homework just half an hour after she got home; it beat trying to figure out why Zed's expression changed all of a sudden when she had a go at him in the parking lot. She felt something nagging at the back of her mind, but tried to blare it out by playing her music through her headphones. She had actually managed to get on with her work, and nearly had it finished by the time Sue tapped her on the shoulder, making her jump.  
"Oh, hey, mom. I didn't hear you come in." Aislin said, smiling nervously at her mom. Sue looked at the headphones in her daughter's hand, raising an eyebrow.  
"It's a wonder you haven't gone deaf. How was school?" Sue asked, setting about making herself some tea. Aislin debated about telling her mom about Zed, but decided against it.  
"It's school; what would you expect? I got into Jazz band though." Aislin said, shrugging a little. Sue smiled, facing her.  
"That's fantastic. Which instrument?" She asked.  
"Piano. I was thinking maybe I should get a violin with my first pay check; you know, so I don't suck at it." She said, looking at her mom. Sue nodded.  
"Sure honey. Oh, we'll have visitors tomorrow." Sue said before she poured hot water into a mug and dropped her teabag in it. Aislin tilted her head to the side.  
"Oh? Who?" She asked, curious. Sue shrugged.  
"Saul and Karla Benedict. I met them earlier in the week, and I think we could do with a conversation. You go to school with two of the Benedict boys; did you know that they were savants?" Sue asked, looking at her daughter. Aislin tensed for a moment, then relaxed.  
"Uh, I had no idea." _Until today._ "I'm guessing that the Benedicts were the people you wanted to meet out here?" Aislin mused, knowing that her lie was going to come back and bite her at some point. Sue sighed softly.  
"I do wish you would pay a little bit more attention to the Net. They take care of most of it. And they're nice people. And I think their son is about your age." Sue said, smiling at the end, which told Aislin exactly what she was thinking.  
"No. I have enough to deal with, I mean I have school, and music. I hardly have time for a boy, never mind a soulfinder. He's also the school bad boy; you really think I would be the one for him. I'm the new girl, never mind the nerd." Aislin exasperated. For some reason, the idea of one terrified her, after all, look at what it had done to her sister. They had gotten along perfectly well, until she found her soulfinder, and all he seemed to want to do was pull the family apart. Sue tutted.  
"You say that like it's going to be the death of you." Sue said. Aislin shrugged.  
"The stress might kill me?" She offered. Sue rolled her eyes and shook her head.  
"If you say so dear." She said, looking through the cupboards for something as she sipped her tea. Aislin shook her head, closing her books so that she could go up to her room to finish her homework.  
Honey, would you mind making some of your brilliant chocolate chip cookies for tomorrow?" Sue asked her just as Aislin had gathered her stuff in her arms. Aislin thought for a moment.  
"Yeah, I guess so. Just as long as I have the kitchen to myself." She said, looking at her mom. Sue nodded.  
"I'll get the money for you to get what you want from town." Sue said, putting her mug down and walking over to her bag. Aislin took that as her chance to put her stuff in her room.

In town, Aislin made her way to the store, making a list of what she actually needed to make the chocolate chip cookies that everyone seemed to love. She walked down one of the aisles, thinking to herself about whatever entered her mind. She was looking at the chocolate chips and cooking chocolates when her mind moved on to the suggestion of a soulfinder. She sighed softly, dreading her own thoughts. She remembered what her eldest sister was like; snappy, pointing out other's flaws, guilt tripping people if she didn't get her own way. And her soulfinder was just cruel. He was really aggressive towards Aislin and once tried to take the family for a ride, and left the town with her sister when they weren't successful. She let out a silent, shaky breath at the thought, cursing the mere mention of soulfinders.  
_I don't want to be like her..._ She thought to herself.  
"Be like who?" A voice made her jump, forcing her shields up, and spin round to be met by the last person she wanted near her mind.  
"What are you doing?" She hissed at Zed, glaring. He put his hands up in surrender, which confused her.  
"Here to get stuff for my mom. I saw you, and you looked pale and scared." He said, hooking his thumbs in his belt loops; a pose she had seen him strike so many times as he lent against his bike. She shook her head, grabbing a bag of chocolate chips and dropping them into her shopping basket.  
"Oh, let me guess; you thought you'd come along and make it worse, and go trespassing into my head." She hissed at him, walking away to get what ever else she needed, not really caring for his answer.  
"I actually wanted to make sure you were okay. And that thought just kind of leaked from you." He said, almost gently, following her.  
"Like Hell you care." She muttered, grabbing a pack of flour. Zed put a hand on her shoulder, making her stop, and flinch away.  
"I'm sorry about lunchtime. I didn't know about your mom being part of the Net, and I just panicked a bit. But some things have come up, and I just wanted you to know that I'm sorry." He said, actually sounding like he meant it. She still couldn't help but feel that there was something else he wanted to say.  
"Whatever." she said, turning away before her curiosity got the better of her.  
"Can we talk, some time soon? Privately." He asked her. She looked over her shoulder.  
"Why? Want to try out some new threats on me?" She retorted. He sighed, looking down.  
"Okay, I deserve that. But that's never going to be the reason why I want to talk to you. I'll see you tomorrow." He said, turning and walking away before she could say no to him. She sighed, getting the rest of the stuff she needed, and left once she had paid for it. Whilst she was walking home, she wondered what Zed would ever want to talk about to her. She shrugged ehr shoulders, guessing it was just to try get her to do his homework or something.


	6. Chapter 6

**her outfit for this chapter is on polyvore, followed by: /untitled_819/set?id=101224752**

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In Aislin's opinion, Saturday morning came far too quickly, not looking forward to the idea of seeing Zed, as he had said he would see her on Saturday. She did get up though, just to keep Sue happy about her being social. She got changed and went down stairs, managing to grab a glass of apple juice before there was a knock on the door. She looked at Sue, who smiled at her.  
"Morning love. I didn't hear you come down." She said as she walked over to answer the front door. Aislin took a small sip of her apple juice as she heard Sue greet Saul and Karla, but she wasn't expecting to hear the last part of her greeting.  
"Ah, you must be Zed; lovely to meet you. Come in and I'll get some coffee for us all." Sue said, becoming the cheerful hostess she seemed to become every time people came around. Aislin took a deep breath, and walked out to meet the Benedicts, or at least Mr and MRS Benedict; she was still a little bit nervous about speaking to Zed. She was debating about whether or not she believed that he wanted to know if she was okay the night before, or if he was maybe trying to get to her. She put up a friendly smile, but hung back.  
"It's Aislin, right?" Saul said, stepping towards her and offering his hand for a shake. Aislin smiled and nodded, putting her hand in his rather strong grip.  
"Yes, Mr Benedict, it's nice to meet you." Aislin said, taking her hand back when he let go.  
"Pleasure is ours. This is my wife Karla, and I'm sure you've met Zed at school." Saul said, smiling at her. Aislin smiled to Karla, her gaze hardly touching on Zed, even though she was fully aware of the fact that he was there.  
"Mrs Benedict, Zed." Aislin said, keeping up her smile.  
"It's lovely to finally meet you, lovey. Zed and Yves haven't stopped talking about your piano skills." Karla said, taking Aislin's hand.  
"Oh?" Aislin said, looking up to Zed as if she was expecting him to ridicule her. He just shrugged a little, his expression relaxed.  
"Why don't you come through to the living room, and we can talk." Sue said, smiling. Zed seemed to hesitate whilst Saul and Karla were happy to move through.  
"Uh, actually, I was hoping that Aislin and I could take a walk together?" He said, although it sounded more like he was pleading with her.  
"Sure." Aislin said, curious about why he would want to go for a walk with her. Zed smiled a little, but still seemed a little nervous. She gave in to her curiosity, and dipped into her gift. He was caught in a mix of green and gold, which confused the Hell out of her. He headed to the door and held it open for her as she walked out, followed shortly by Zed.

They'd been walking along the road for about a minute or two when Zed gently pulled her hood up, which surprised her.  
"What are you doing?" She asked, looking at him. He was pulling his own hood up.  
"It's getting a bit windy, and I didn't want you getting cold." He said, as if his gentleness was nothing out of the ordinary.  
"That hardly explains why all of a sudden you're being so nice to me. Why do you feel guilty?" She said, giving away the fact that she had tapped into her gift.  
"That's why I needed to take a walk with you. Um, we seriously need to talk." He said, stopping and looking at her. Aislin stopped in her tracks, a little scared of what he was going to tell her. He sighed, looking down.  
"Uh, we were... man, this is hard. Um, we're soulfinders." He said, looking up at her to see her reaction to it. She shook her head almost violently, terrified that it was either him trying to get to her, or that she was going to become like her sister.  
"No, no. I'm not your soulfinder." She breathed, taking a step away from him. Zed opened his mouth, but didn't say anything. Aislin took another step back.  
"Aislin, please. I'm really sorry. Please, just listen to me." He said gently, like he was trying to calm a scared animal or child.  
"You're wrong." She whispered. He shook his head.  
_"I'm sorry. Please just give me a chance."_ She could almost feel his words go through her. She had never felt so _there_ in her whole life. He had dropped a bomb on her, and no one else could have heard it.  
"No, this isn't happening... I can't be like her. No." Aislin breathed, or at least tried to. It started to feel like she was being stabbed in the chest, which made her breathe quicker. She clutched her chest, knowing that it was the start of a panic attack. Zed seemed to know it too, as he moved quickly to go behind her, holding her up.  
"Aislin, relax. Just breathe." He whispered in her ear, moving his hands to her shoulders, holding her up, but paid attention to her breathing. He remembered something about Xavier's rants about his medical training, and used his hands to cover Aislin's mouth and nose, like he was making an airmask with his hands. She didn't want to, but she actually relaxed into him. She held onto his wrists, letting her breathing slowly go back to normal, and gathered her thoughts.  
"Can I ask who you don't want to be like? Who's made you so scared of soulfinders?" Zed asked quietly, still holding her to him. Aislin wanted to pull away from him, but she didn't trust that she could stand without him, or that she could pull away from him.  
"My sister's soulfinder... he twisted her into something horrible." She said, almost whimpering it. Zed let out a sigh, resting his chin on her shoulder, which meant he was leaning down.  
"I promise I'll never do anything like that to you." He said quietly. Aislin didn't know if he should take his word or not, but she was still holding onto his wrists, even though he had wrapped his arms around her waist.  
"Let's keep walking." He said quietly, taking the smallest of head movements from Aislin as a yes.


	7. Chapter 7

When Aislin and Zed got back to Sue and Zed's parents, Aislin was quiet, sitting on the sofa, not bothering to flinch when Zed sat next to her. She would have used the excuse that there wasn't anywhere else to sit, except he put his arm along the back of the sofa, behind her head, and was sitting closer to her than a person would if they were just sitting next to another person just for the seat. She also didn't miss the subtle nod from Zed to his parents.  
_"They knew?!"_ Aislin snapped at him, not turning her head as she sent to message to him telepathically. She could feel his mental shrug.  
_"Mom has this way of just drawing things out of people. Sorry. Besides, you just have a very obvious effect on me."_ He offered in means of an explanation. She crossed her arms, knowing her lips were ever so slightly pouted. His hand dropped down to brush his fingertips along her now bare shoulder. She actually shivered a little, the trail his fingers had left felt hypersensitive. He smiled at her reaction to him, openly ignoring the conversation that her mom and his parents were having. Zed obviously wanted to have a conversation on his own with her.  
_"I have to admit; I didn't know you had a temper on you. At least, not as much as you have."_ He sounded amused, happy, and proud. She rolled her eyes.  
_"Yeah, well, I didn't know you had such a dislike to new girls."_ She retorted. He mentally sighed, and tensed up physically.  
_"I didn't know what to do; I had no idea who you were. And I didn't know if you were a threat so I had to be cautious, but you just seemed so... delicate. Maybe to delicate to be one. I panicked, and I regret it."_ There wasn't any amusement in his tone anymore, and a glance at him told her that his aura was a mix of loving gold, and a guilty green. She sighed, knowing that his aura wouldn't lie to her; he really was sorry  
_"Just don't do it again. I might embarrass you in front of your friends again."_ She said, trying to find something to hold over him. He smirked, a tint of flirty pink invading his aura.  
_"I would love to see you do that again. You looked so... sexy and feisty whilst you were doing it."_ He said, looking at her completely now. She fought the blush that was threatening to break out at that moment.  
_"Dream on; I'm neither of those things."_ She said, remembering what they guys she used to know thought was 'sexy' or 'feisty'.  
_"Trust me, those guys were blind to not see you that way, which I'm glad about. I just hope you know that you mean everything to me, and I hope I can get another chance."_ There wasn't a pink tinge in his aura anymore, so Aislin gave a small nod, leaving it at that for him. She was still scared of becoming like her sister; manipulated by her soulfinder, but the feelings she got when he spoke to her, or touched her, they overrode any logical thoughts she had. He smiled, noticing her nod.  
_"Thank you."_ He said simply, leaning forward and picking up two chocolate chip cookies. He passed one to her, which she took, simply because it was given to her. He took a bite, and hummed in appreciation.  
"Oh, wow. These are amazing; who made them?" He asked, as if he didn't know. Aislin couldn't fight the blush that flared up on her cheeks. Sue grinned.  
"Aislin did; she's quite the little baker when she gets to it." Sue said, beaming at her daughter. Karla smiled.  
"I may have to borrow her when the boys come back home; they do love it when there's home baked goodies for them to chew on." Karla said, half sounding like she was trying to compliment Aislin, and half sounding serious. Aislin looked down and nibbled on her own biscuit. Zed smiled at her.  
_"When the boys get home? How many are there of you?"_ Aislin asked Zed, hoping that she wasn't pushing her luck on finding out about his family.  
_"Seven children. All boys. And you're not pushing your luck; you might as well be family at this point."_ He replied, making Aislin wish he would stop reading her so easily.  
_"If you're the youngest..."_ She mused, earning a light brush on her arm from him again.  
_"Yeah, it's intense for me."_ He said, sounding like he didn't want to talk about it. Aislin knew that tone so well, and decided to drop it. Zed smiled at her softly, like she was his queen. She bit her lip, leaning back into the sofa, and playing with her hands.

After the visit and the revelation, Aislin went back to her room when the Benedicts left, trying to figure out what to do about being Zed's soulfinder. Sure, it was supposed to be simple; find out they were fated for each other, fall into his arms and live happily ever after. Yet from what Aislin had seen of that plan of action, it didn't go well. She sat on her bed, hugging a pillow to her chest. with a sigh, Ailsin tried to focus the positives of giving Zed a chance. She started with the simple things; she wouldn't be as alone as she had been the week before, she wouldn't have to worry about being scared of Zed, and she could probably fit in more as a 'normal' girl at school if she had evidence of a social life. Then, without being able to stop herself, she wondered about why Zed was so popular with the girls.  
_Dumb question; he's what most girls want; tall, dark, handsome. The bad boy of the school too. Most girls like their guys to be strong and all that. Oh, and girls like great kissers. And I have no idea about that with him..._ She couldn't help her mind from wondering a little. Until she nearly died of embarrassment.  
_"If you want to know, all you have to do is ask."_ Zed's voice echoed in her mind, and made her jump.  
_"out of my head! It's not cool to have you fishing through my thoughts."_ She said defensively, knowing he had just caught her thinking about him. And she could hear his chuckle.  
_"I can't help it; it just seems to leak out of you and flood into me."_ He said, as if that made it okay. She shook her head.  
_"That was still private."__ She said.  
__"You can still find out whenever you want."_ He said. She blushed, rolling her eyes. _"Can I see you tomorrow? Just to hang out and get to know you more."_ Zed said, sounding like he was really trying to win her over. She nodded.  
_"I guess so, but just know, my mom's going out, and I can't promise I'll give up my time on the Xbox for you."_ She said, earning a chuckle from Zed.  
_"I don't mind if you play Xbox, as long as I can sit with you and hold you."_Aislin hadn't been expecting him to want to hold her, but she just nodded, then told him it would be fine. He seemed happy about that, and only let her leave the conversation when she was taking five minutes to formulate a simple sentence that made sense.  
_"Sleep; you're tired and I don't want you feeling like crap later."_ He said, and she could almost imagine him lying on her bed, facing her and stroking her hair as he said it.  
_"And yes, I would love to be lying there, but I'm not."_ He said, making her blush.  
_"Night hun."_ She replied, settling in her bed, and not thinking twice about using what she called anyone that was sweet to her, for Zed. He seemed overjoyed about her calling him 'hun', like it was the greatest achievement anyone could get.


	8. Chapter 8

**Oh my gosh, I did not expect to get this many people saying they like the story, and all that, but I have, and thank you guys! As requested, I got myself together and put up the next chapter!**

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Making herself breakfast had seemed like too much of a task, so Aislin settled for just an apple to munch on as she sat on the floor, trying to decide what game she wanted to play. She bit her lip, thinking and debating about the various games she had collected. She shrugged her shoulders and settled for playing Mortal Kombat, since she hadn't played it in a while. She put the game in and got straight into her first round. Today was her 'geek out' day; she was wearing her glasses, her hair pulled over her shoulder and styled in a messy braid, and she was wearing denim shorts and a lose fitting tank top that would occasionally slip across and show her bra; not that she cared right now; she wasn't planning on going out. the thought of going out made her remember the fact that Zed had promised to come see her. She shrugged her shoulders, too in to her game to get up and change.  
_"Zed?_" She thought to him, shivering at the thought of being on her own all of a sudden. His reply was instant, like he was a starved man given food to eat.  
_"Hey Aislin. What's up?"_ He asked her, his voice in her head was like a soft caress, making her realise that maybe he wouldn't be like her sister's soulfinder.  
_"When are you coming?"_ She asked, not bothering to hide that fact that she wanted him to be there at that moment.  
_"Now if you want me to. What's wrong?" _He sounded so caring; a complete contrast to what she had first thought of him.  
_"Please? I just don't like being on my own that much."_ she admitted to him. She could feel him start to get ready to go see her, glad he didn't laugh at her childishness or her desperation to see him.  
_"I'll be there in a few minutes."_ He said to her, sounding happy to see her, rather than annoyed that she wanted to see him straight away. She moved on to the second round in her game, and had just finished it when she heard the growling purr of Zed's bike.  
_"It's open, just come in."_ She said to him, knowing she shouldn't depend on telepathy too much, but it made her feel safe with him. She could feel his smile as the front door opened and someone walked in, closing the door behind themselves.  
"Hey." Zed said, his voice making her heart feel like it was vibrating with the sound. She smiled at the sensation, and used the break between rounds in the game to look up at him as he walked over to her, then sat on the floor next to her.  
"Hi." She said quietly, looking from his eyes to his smile, then at the TV, trying to hide the slight blush.  
"Don't tell me; you're thinking of what I caught you thinking last night." He said softly, his voice still having an effect on her. She blushed more, but just looked at the screen with a look of concentration on her face.  
"No." She denied, but he was right. He chuckled, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her into his lap. She squeaked, much to her humiliation and his amusement, and tensed up. He sensed it and let his hold in her ease up.  
"What's wrong? Did I scare you?" He asked, remembering that the day before, she had been so scared of the fact that she had a soulfinder, and there was constant mention of 'becoming like _her_' in Aislin's thoughts. She shook her head.  
"No, it's not you. I just... it's hard to explain." She said, knowing it was a lame excuse. He just nodded.  
"It's okay. You don't have to tell me if you don't want." he said, rubbing her arms gently to relax her. It must have worked because her thoughts calmed down and she relaxed against his chest as she started another round in her game, Zed being more than happy to watch her and hold her close to himself.

"It's my elder sister." Aislin said unexpectedly after an hour of playing games and idle conversation with Zed. He looked down at her, confused. She looked up at him, trying to see his expression.  
"She's the reason I'm terrified of having found you, or being found by you. It's because of what happened to her." She explained when she saw his confusion. His expression changed from confused, to understanding, to confused again.  
"Why would it scared you? What happened?" Zed asked gently. She bit her lip, looking at her hands, holding the controller in her lap.  
"We used to get along really well; she was my elder sister and my best friend. Then she found him and he changed her, twisted her into just wanting money from us, and eventually they just left when i asked them to stop being so horrible. They said it was my fault that they were leaving, and that I was tearing the family apart. Dad managed to maybe calm me down a little, but it still haunts me." She said, still looking at the controller in her lap. His grip tightened around her, and he rested his forehead on her shoulder, holding her tightly, by gently.  
"You could never be the cause of a family breaking apart; it was him that did it, not you." He said softly to her. "And I swear, I will never make you become anything other than yourself." He added, kissing her shoulder gently. She blushed lightly, for spilling her guts to him, for the kiss on her shoulder, for what he said, for simply sitting on his lap like she was. He kept a hold of her, like she would slip away if he let her go, but he knew at some point she would need space.  
"How many of my thoughts have you heard?" Aislin asked suddenly, breaking the silence and grasping at anything to distract herself.  
"A few. Like last night I heard your thoughts on what it would be like to kiss me. Then in the store when you said you didn't want to be like your sister. The only time your mind was really open to me and flowing thoughts to me was when you were playing piano for us at Jazz band, which by the way, I'm glad you approve of my drumming skills." He said, trying to lighten the mood. She smiled, biting her lip.  
"I was scared of you then, and I was relieved that we at least had something in common." She admitted, playing with his hand as she spoke. She liked the look of their hands together; hers small and pale compared to his large and tanned one. She could feel him smile against her shoulder.  
"And now? Are you still scared of me?" He asked, curious. If she was, she was doing a fantastic job of facing up to her fears.  
"Not really. I mean, now that I've been able to flash my rather bad temper at you." She said, remembering his expression all to well from Friday afternoon, after she had snapped at him telepathically. He chuckled.  
"That was... how do you keep such a hot temper in you? you seem so small and delicate." He said, half marvelling at her, half joking. She shrugged.  
"I have my father's temper." She said, as if it explained everything. He kissing her shoulder again.  
"Well, I like it; you look rather cute and feisty when you tell me off like that." He said. She shook her head.  
"I'm not cute or feisty. I had to cower in a corner for a week before I could do anything." She said. He chuckled.  
"Were you really cowering in a corner, or were you planning your attack? And I must admit, the guys I hang out with at school are rather impressed with you." He said. She looked at him confused.  
"Why would they be impressed? I told off their best friend." She said, trying to figure it out.  
"They're impressed because you did what they'd never think of doing; Try and pick a fight with me." He said, smiling at her, obviously, and confusingly, proud of the fact that she had tried to pick a fight with him.


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry about taking forever to update, but we've been super busy at work and everything, especially with COD: Ghost coming in.**

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Aislin was resting against Zed, still sitting in his lap, as he took over the game for her. She let out a content sigh, her eyes closing just that little bit, and the thought of falling asleep against him did cross her mind. He must have seen that thought from her because he chuckled softly.  
"Wouldn't your mom freak if she walked in and found you curled up and asleep against the big bad wolf?" He asked, still playing the game, but most of his attention was on her. She was too comfortably close to sleep to bother blushing.  
"I'm good with animals; she'll think I tamed you." Aislin replied, half slurring her words as she nuzzled into his chest more. Zed chuckled again.  
"Is that so? And what would she think of me even being here?" He asked, just happy to hear her voice, in love with the slight slur in her words from sleepiness. Aislin gave a less than halfhearted shrug.  
"That it was my business. Then again, you could just tell her." She mumbled, her eyes completely closed now. Zed must have paused the game since his arms moved around her, holding her to him more.  
"so, you're no longer scared of the idea of being my soulfinder?" He asked gently, is breath tickling her ear. She didn't even bother with an attempt at a shrug.  
"Too tired and comfy to be scared." She breathed, making him chuckle more. He kissed the side of her head, which made her smile.  
"you're like a comfy, big teddy bear." She mumbled, not awake enough to pay attention to what she mumbled. He smirked.  
"Just so you know; only you can call me that." he said, smiling. He would literally hit anyone else that tried to call him that; it was her privilege to call him things like that. Aislin seemed too far into sleep to other replying to him, but instead manage to hook her legs around one of his, like she was trying to cling to him. He smiled, still holding her, and relaxed against the couch.

Aislin shot up an hour later, hearing a car door close from outside. Zed leant forward, trying to pull her back to him, hushing her gently and telling her that it was just her mom. She nodded to show she had heard him, and slowly relaxed against his pulls to relax against him again.  
"How long had I been asleep?" She asked quietly, her voice breaking once, from the fact that she had slept and not used her voice.  
"About an hour." Zed whispered, resting his chin on her shoulder as he held her. It felt so natural to both of them to sit like that.  
"Your mom's really good at shields." Zed mused quietly. Aislin shrugged a little.  
"It's her gift." She said, just as the frontdoor was unlocked and her mom, Sue, walked in.  
"Hi Aislin, I'm back." Sue called, dumping her keys in the bowl that she usually dropped them in.  
"Through here mom. And Zed's here." She said, picking up one of Zed's hands and playing with it. Sue walked into the living room, and instantly raised an eyebrow at how the two of them here sitting.  
"Ma'am." Zed greeted, obviously wanting to stand up, but Aislin wouldn't budge from his lap.  
"Everything go alright at the studio?" Aislin asked, looking up at her mom with a completely neutral expression.  
"Fine. What have you two been up to?" Sue asked, obviously curious. Aislin shrugged.  
"talking, hanging out. The usual stuff." Aislin said. Sue nodded.  
"Oh, and Zed and I are kind of soulfinders." She said, toying with the controller for the xbox 360, but being careful to not resume that game. Sue grinned at her daughter and Zed.  
"That's fantastic! When did you find out?" She asked, obviously over the moon about it.  
"Yesterday. We didn't say anything because I was a bit scared of the whole thing." Aislin said, squeezing his hand gently. Zed smiled and relaxed when she did, making her smile more.  
"I see. Well, I'll leave you two alone for now. Call if you need anything." Sue said, smiling, leaving the two of them to enjoy each other's company again.

"You know what you haven't brought up again?" Zed murmured in Aislin's ear as she was fighting Scorpion in the game. She hummed her curiosity, paying attention to both Zed and the game.  
"What?" She asked quietly.  
_"The kiss."_ He said it to her telepathically, mainly because he knew the effect it had on her. telepathy made them feel closer than they already were, and she would occasionally shiver at the effect. But right now she blushed. He chuckled softly, still resting his chin on her shoulder.  
"Why would you bring that up?" She asked timidly. He shrugged.  
"Because I want to." He answered, earning even more of a blush from her. He chuckled softly, kissing her shoulder softly.  
"Fine." She said quietly, pausing the game and turning to face him. "But I doubt I'm good at kissing." She warned him, making him frown a little in confusion.  
"What do you mean? How would you be bad at kissing?" He asked, amazed, and confused. She bit her lip, looking at her hands.  
"Okay, so, I might have been the awkward teen at school that had more of an interest in fictitious characters than real boys, and as a result, I didn't really go out with many boys." She blurted out. Zed nodded to show he understood.  
"I'll admit; I'm glad that not many other guys got to you before I did." He said, smiling at her, and resting his forehead against hers. She smiled shyly at him.  
"Please don't laugh if I mess up." She said quietly, which he nodded to.  
"I promise." He said, doubting she could mess up. slowly he leant in and pressed his lips to hers, loving how soft they felt. She closed her eyes instantly, putting her hands on his shoulders to steady herself as she slowly kissed him back, following his lead. She never thought his lips would feel so good, not after that one story about him apparently having split his lip in a fight, but it was perfect. There was the slightest bit of roughness on his lips, but they still had a certain softness to them. She could feel him smile into the kiss as he let it last for a moment or two longer, then pulled away from her slowly. When she opened her eyes to see him, he was grinning.  
"Now, I completely disagree with you; you're not bad at kissing." He said, smiling at her. She smiled back at him, a little proud of herself for not screwing up, and that she could make him grin like that.  
"I'm glad I lived up to standards." She teased. He chuckled softly, and the rest of the day was spent playing games on xbox, and the occasional stolen kiss, which could last minutes at a time if they hadn't been worried about being caught by Sue.


End file.
